On a night of this caliber (or calibre if you’re from the other side of the Atlantic), it was really hard to find something that would make girls scream their damn fool heads off like the fab 4 just walked onto the Ed Sullivan show. Trust me, I searched far and wide. The closest I could come was Brady’s hair from circa the ‘damn, he fine’ era. Very boyishly charming and the quintessential anti-foppish response to being clean cut and dandy to make everyone think you’re a gentleman. Well our main story of Thursday Night Football, Julian Edelman, did try to pull off something similar but lets face facts: Pearl Jam > Creed > Edelman. I know it really hurts, bro, but not everyone can pull off the ‘down with the man…whoever that is’ look, especially not a chiseled athlete. It just doesn’t suit you (but nice Beatles shirt!). What does suit Edelman, though, you ask? Brady and in particular his love for small white guys running a quick slant. Know what suits PPR owners? Being owners of Julian, of course. Edelman finished the night with 13 receptions and 78 yards on 18 targets, good for an obscene 20.8 points in our Razzball Commenter Leagues settings. That’s sans touchdowns which could also pretty much sum up this game. With the Pats missing three major targets, Edelman stepped up and…well, he didn’t really do much. I think he had a couple of first down catches. Yeah…pretty much that and a buncha 3-5 yard pops. A 6.0 ypc average would be good…if it were yards per carry and not catch. Ugh, this game was pretty nasty and the weather didn’t help. But let’s stay focused (that was more for me than you). Edelman is going to be a low-end WR2 for the next few weeks for some reasons I’ll discuss later on. If you somehow slept through your first waiver wire adding period and so did the rest of your league mates, well, your league sucks and go pick Julian up. Here’s what else I saw on Thursday Night Football for the 2013 Fantasy Football season…

Danny Amendola – It was rumored all week that he was going to miss this game tonight. Yeah, ok, fine, sure. Then there were rumors he’d be out until week 4. Um, yeah, not as ok but we’ll make due. Now there’s rumor he could be out for a full 6 weeks. Not ok dude! His injuries have never been nagging so I was disinclined to slap the ‘injury prone’ tag on him. Now I’ll do it with gusto, hard, and directly onto his already broken groin. Yes, I just touched Danny’s groin in anger. You made me do this, ‘dola!

Geno Smith – The good: it looks like he had plenty of time to make throws. The bad: he never seemed to throw the damn ball. The good: it was clear he was looking through all his reads and not panicked. The bad: he never seemed to throw the damn ball. The good: he stuck it out even when the pressure closed in. The bad: he never seemed to throw the damn ball. The good: when he did throw the ball, he seemed capable of being accurate enough to move the chains. The bad: his receivers can’t catch the damn ball. Geno looked like a rookie but not one who collapsed under pressure at any moment. He’ll need to work on making quicker decisions but he also needs some more help surrounding him to be successful ROS.

Rob Gronkowski – No news here, really, which is good news. They’ve been saying all along he’d be back week 3. After the passing night the Pats had, they’re gonna need him. For the two teams I have him that are losing, I need him. Come party with me, Gronk!

Tom Brady – Finished the night 19/39. After reading the 13 receptions by Welker…I mean Amendola…I mean Edelman, you get the sense that the whole ‘catch the ball’ thing didn’t work out for the rest of Brady and company on Thursday night. Let me tell you, Tom was angry and let me tell you this part deux, that guys cute when he’s angry. Part trois? Brady’s always cute, angry or not! Which gives you a hint about next week’s buy column. It may feature Brady and the word ‘BUY’ near his name. I’m just as excited as you are to find out.

Chris Ivory – He looked great, going 12 for 52 on the ground. Then he fumbled. And we saw him no more. I’m not throwing the towel in on him yet but we’re relying on the Jets to realize what to do with a player at a skill position that actually has the ‘skill’ part. It’s a newfound thing, much akin to a baby boy finding his pee-pee for the first time. He has no idea what it does or why it’s there but he’s happy to have it. Hopefully the Jets stop playing with their pee-pee in week 3 and start playing Ivory more.

Bilal Powell – He looked like Shonn Greene but with intelligence. That’s both a slap in the face and a compliment. I’ve never hated Powell, he’s just not a very dynamic player. There are a lot of guys like him in the NFL at RB – Ballard, BJGE, etc – and there’s nothing wrong with them. Except when they’re blocking us from enjoying a fun player to watch, of course.

Aaron Dobson – Had a touchdown that your grandmother in her wheelchair could catch and pretty much dropped everything else. He’s officially Aaron Dropson. That’s both his ability and what you can probably do with him in shallower leagues.

Kenbrell Thompkins – Joined in on the drop parade with Dropson. Hrm…Dropkins? Eh, doesn’t work. Needless to say, the Pats are gonna be happy when ‘dola/Gronk return.

Stephen Hill – Had 86 on 4 receptions and a really bad fumble that swung the momentum to the Pats early. Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. Every time Stephen brings us to the top of the Hill, he pushes us back down to his bottom.

Stevan Ridley – Only had 40 yards but dwarfed any other challenger in carries at 16. The next closest was 4 by Blount, but it was hard to tell if he was trying to run the ball or if he was a frightened old man walking his groceries briskly back to the car while people tried to help him. Despite the poor numbers, it looks like Ridley isn’t fully encased in Bill’s dog house. I’d still pick up Bolden for next week, though, just in case.

David Wilson – Had zero to do with the game but the Giants still aren’t calling him the starter heading into Sunday. I’m just reiterating the BUY call I did back here. It’s always darkest before the dawn…and with your head in the oven. Cut that out! You don’t even have a gas stove!

Clyde Gates – Had a couple of good catches but the reality is he’d be an afterthought if Holmes were 100% and Kerley were playing. Some of his drops were so momentum-crushingly criminal, no Bonnie was needed.

Mark Sanchez – Not game relevant – and when was Sanchize ever game relevant anyway? – but it looks like he’s out for the year with a torn labrum based on a certain coach’s call to start him in the 4th quarter of a pre-season game. This same coach is still giving more touches to Powell than Ivory. Now I’m not trying to say they’re the same thi…wait, yes I am. Rex Ryan, the grass isn’t brown and it doesn’t smell like a fermented burrito in Foxborough. Pull your head out of there before you suffocate. This is why the Jets can’t have nice things.

As a fellow ‘Dola owner. I sympathize with the anger in your blurb for him. I worry he is the Jennings of 2012….but worse he plays for the Pats, so we won’t know he’s ready until 2 minutes before his next game…whenever that is.
My opponent for the week, of course, got Edelman before I could and is enjoying his upgrade on LMoore. Ouch!
I have Brown rostered for his great wk 2 matchup, but the Dola news is making me think longer term. Is GTate/ESanders or DHopkins in a higher tier (ROS speaking) than Brown for you in PPR?

@Sky: Yeah short benches again, so most teams have 4 WRs. Some players have been lured to week 1 breakouts like Simpson, Royal and Baldwin and will go back to this group next week. I guess my taking Marlon Brown for this fill-in role qualifies me for the group.
If Tate wasn’t playing SF this week, I’d say he is in a microtier above the rest and drop Brown for him. I know the ‘Hawks are your team, is Tate still the receiver to own there?

I’m not reall sure what to do with my WR3 and Flex in my PPR league: I have Boldin, Wilson, Austin and Mike Williams. I’m leaning towards Austin for one of the slots, but the second . . . Can I really bench Boldin after that monster game, or is the Legion of Boom dominant enough to erase him?

I ranked Mike Williams ahead of Boldin this week. I think he’s a safer play against New Orleans but D-Wil has the most upside of your remaining three so it depends on needs. Playing in Seattle has made a lot of good teams look silly before. Can’t promise history will repeat itself but I’d be inclined to avoid starters there if I could. So, Williams for floor, D-Wil for upside. I’d lean Williams if you don’t feel confident in the rest of your roster.

@James R: Boldin probably isn’t going to score Half of week 1 in more than 5-6 weeks this season, and I don’t think the Seahawks is one of them. I just like Austin for PPR because he should catch 5-6 balls, so I’m starting at 8 points.

@Sky: Yeah it seems like the Pat’s front office is trying to go as cheap as they can and hope Brady gets the most that he can out of what he is given. You can’t make lemonade from a piece of dog poop though. Even if said dog ate lemons all day.

The whole Aaron Hernandez murdering someone also put a wrinkle into their plans for this year.

I’d much rather have Geno as my team’s QB than Sanchez. Sanchez got ample opportunity and did zip with it.

Sky, u gave me an opinion last night on this, but the trade has changed. Would u trade Arian foster and ben Tate for Reggie bush and David wilson? 1/2 ppr. After the trade i would have doug Martin, Reggie bush, David wilson, cj2k, and Lamar miller. Should I do this?also in this league we have a rb/wr flex and a rb/wr/te flex so I can start 4 running backs. Thanks for your time, appreciate it.

Read this morning that Reggie Bush is also dealing with knee issues (hyperextended it during last weeks game) in addition to the finger and groin injuries already reported. Feeling really smart for drafting Bell in all 3 of my leagues right about now. Excited to see what he can do with (what I can only assume will be) more touches this week.

In a standard league that starts 2wr 1 flex….Have Cobb and colston as starters with jimmy graham and gronkowski for 1 te spot…would my graham and colston be too much to offer for aj green and ivory? Also have decker, Gordon, Blackmon, and hartline on my bench.

It was a tough call on draft day taking Kaep over Brady but Kaep’s upside was too much to ignore. Won’t know if that will prove smart or not until season is over. But after watching last night’s game I don’t see how Brady is a buy, if he is a buy you are assuming Gronk and Amendola stay healthy. Maybe Gronk gets back and tears it up and is mostly healthy for the season but amendola and edelman have two of the most recent health track records in the game. Edelman took a beating last night. These aren’t the Patriots of old were they can plug in old timers who aren’t flashy but get the job done, these are rookies who clearly have a long way to go. I’d rather have stafford or luck at this point to name a few.

What the hell do I know though I drafted your boy james jones over jordy….nightmares on that one

Yeah, I think we’ve seen this before. It’s only been 2 weeks. Never a good determinant for how a season is going to go. ‘dola/Gronk/Edelman and slow improvements from the surrounding parts should help. Don’t forget Bolden should be back at some point, helping lessen the blow of the loss of Vereen.

James Jones ain’t my boy! Been saying all off-season I couldn’t see myself drafting him. Too TD dependent in his points last year.

I’m not a Bennett fan but he’s a big step above Miller due to at least having some sort of role on his offense. I’d pick him up. 15 waiver moves? You mean if he clears waivers it doesn’t count? Please say yes, 15 is way too little for a football season.

I loved the quote from Sanchez saying he “definitely” had the starting job locked up before his injury. I get the whole “I’m the stud QB all my life so everyone’s irrationally inflated my ego” thing but what pics of Ryan’s wife does Sanchez own that he continually went along with this charade to the point of putting his job on the line this year for it? It’s pathetic.

Ha, I’m not defending Sanchize but I do think you need to build around the players you have if you want them to develop. Just never saw that team do that for him. But regardless, that team needs a checkup from the neck up.

In my 12-team, PPR/.5PPRA/10 Ret. Yards per point league, the Spiller/Shorts owner wasn’t ready to talk turkey after one bad week, so I’ve moved my sights onto David Wilson. How does a David Wilson for Eddie Lacy swap sound? Is that a fair offer? I’m not really sure what to think about either of them going forward although I like Lacy now more than I did when I drafted him.

@Sky: kinda what I was thinking as well. I’ve been getting some amazing lowball offers for those guys, just making sure I wasn’t crazy……one of them was AJ and Denarius for Floyd and DMC, lol no thanks. I have no problem trading anyone, I don’t believe that any player is untradeable, but Chump Dumps and Pu Pu Platter level trade offers are 1. Insulting my intelligence, and 2. Showing your desperation. I can probably afford to be patient.

I have Andre Brown and Tate on my bench…should I use waiver to grab James Jones? I could always drop Bradford my backup QB…or just hold tight. I start Boldin, Megatron and Desean. Don’t need WR but could use as trade bait or something. IDK. Thanks!

How much FAAB ($100) would you spend on Rudolph. I need a TE and so do 2 more teams.

Would you trade Ridley for deangelo Williams and Jordan Cameron .5ppr? Drafted Ridley in the 3rd rd over Fitzgerald and Cobb so id have 2 RBs. Wait for Ridley to bounce back, am I selling too-low or do you see the Pats being a mess all-season long? Thanks

@Sky: busy football friday. 12-team .5ppr w/flex. 15 week season and NO PLAYOFFS.
would you trade L.Bell for JCameron or Orange Julius? What about DeAndre Hopkins and Bell for TE and sweetener? or does DeAndre Hopkins and/or L.Bell alone warrant Orange Julius or JCameron? Thanks again for your time and insight

Thanks for all the great advice and hard work, Sky.
In the same 12-team league (PPR/.5PPRA/Ret. yds.), I am still holding onto Shane Vereen. Is he worth stashing in the hope that he makes a strong late-season comeback? It’s pretty slim pickings on the waiver wire: Da’Rel Scott, Daniel Thomas, Jackie Battle, Bernard Pierce, Kendall Hunter & Robert Turbin are all out there. I guess I’m leaning Hunter if anyone. My other RBs are Trent Rich, Sproles, Lacy and Helu. I’m only starting 2 RBs because I have Vick slotted into my flex.

amendola pulling an amendola and getting hurt left me with a troubling problem : Rueben Randle or Jerome Simpson at WR#3 this week? Jerome is tempting just because any defense that is smart puts 13 guys and their punter in the box to try and stop Peterson.

Got too drunk at the draft and team is in the crapper already guys …..need to start 3 of the following guys ( WR2, RB2 and 1 Flex in a 14 teamer) Foster and D. Thomas are the WR1 and RB1…and Brady is my QB so I need all the points I can get….Who do you start?

@Sky: Low upside for sure, but I have my doubts that Bradshaw is going to make it through the next 14 weeks or so healthy. Plus, my team is in shambles already, so I needed the excitement of rushing to the waiver wire and picking someone up. Amendola, Lamar Miller, David Wilson, Eric Decker……it’s pretty frustrating when every “buy low” column on Earth is basically your entire roster.

@AP: i have vereen in 3 out of 4 leagues and 3 out of 3 PPR leagues. Amendola in 2 leagues, wilson in 2, miller in 1. Was too worried about Welker to grab decker anywhere. also Jennings as bench WR in 2 leagues.

After David Wilson single-handedly blew the first matchup of the season for me with his -2 points (I lost by 1 point) do I start him again this week? My other options at flex RB/WR are Ben Tate, Golden Tate, Cecil Shorts, or Rueben Randle. What would you do? Please help!!!

So earlier this week I asked who you would start at flex between a. bradshaw, m. williams, and r. randle. You said williams and I agreed at the time. Still williams over bradshaw or start bradshaw now that ballard is out? Thanks Sky.

Damn I forgot to set my lineup before the game last night so Edelman’s 21 pts were hugeeee for the bench battle this week. Forgot I even had Edelman on my team in the RCL. Shit son! Hopefully shonne green has a monster game …

After picking up Edelman, Randle is my WR5 in a 0.5 PPR, bonus at 100 yds. With 2 WR slots and a flex, I probably don’t need 5 WR. Should I dump Randle for a RB flier (Pead?) or hold and maybe try to trade Edelman or whoever gets the best return?

I am admittedly not a huge fan of Richardson. I like him, but see him as a bench/BYE week sub, only. I view him as my 4th or 5th RB. JT would be able to be a flex play and a great backup in case Cameron falters as there isn’t much but Bennett and Rudolph on the waiver wire, and not sure I’d like to live out the rest of the season with either of those guys.

What are your thoughts? And sorry for the long questions with my whole roster, just feel it is more necessary to make an informed opinion.

@Wilsonian: Nah, enjoy your RB depth. D-Rich is a flex play, too. Gotta remember targets = touches. JT isn’t gonna get enough targets on a weekly basis to be consistent. Would rather just roster J-Cam and enjoy your RB depth. Only takes one guy to go down and you’re scrambling as you thin your team out.

I was all set to roll with Brian Hartline at the flex position in my 12-team ppr league, but news of Ballard’s ACL injury has me considering swapping out Hartline for Bradshaw. Who would you say the best play for my fake football team is for this week?

A potential deal could be my Witten, Marlon Brown for his Bradshaw, Welker.

Thoughts? I would be crushed at TE but would be set with my wr1-3 and have solid flex plays with david wilson and bradshaw. I also could pursue Jared Cook or Gronk from one owner but it could cost me more than I would want.

I’m asking because you’re saying trade Witten and then start a ‘scrub TE’. Scrub TE isn’t increasing your team’s value, IMHO. I don’t like chain trade concepts unless they’re worked out in advance. It feels like you’d be making a trade assuming another one will happen and work in your favor to fix the hole you just dug at TE. Unless you have this worked out in advance, I wouldn’t advise that.

So I just traded Edelman for Lamar Miller, did I fuck up ? I only had Morris/Forte and no backups so I really needed a bye week fill-in at least so not having to play him everyday I think it’s ok. Guess I just became millers biggest fan lol

Thompkins reminds me of a Torrey Smith/ Greg Little type player, has the look, size, speed but can’t seem to catch a ball when it hits them in the hands. I think we need a glossary term for that.

I have to disagree about Edelman, if all bands are better than Creed, IMO, and Edelman is better than 3rd Eye Blind, horrible IMO, then therefore Edelman is better than Creed. Yes his look is ridiculous, kinda like when jocked out meatheads go for the nerdy look, But Julian is just trying to find himself in this crazy world of pain and suffering….he probably drives a benzo SUV

Sky I know what your rankings say but I can’t shake this feeling on philly def this week. I just got a gut feeeling they rattle the hell outta rivers at home with all the buzz around the eagles right now. That crowd will be nuts im sure. I got dallas def going as of now but I feel like that’s a trap against a conservative qb/offense. Decisions Decisions.

I’m an underdog this week goin against a rod and dougie who have plus matchups…maybe I should go for the upside play and go eagles…any thoughts on dallas/kc and philly/sd games?

They’re close for a reason. They all have upside for different reasons. I won’t hate you taking a play 2 spots behind another for DEF. Just liked how Dallas attacked the ball vs New York. They reminded me of how the Bears play. Not as good, of course, but going for the strip and attacking the ball. Philly’s def – much like the Ducks def – relies on their offense putting the other team on it’s heels. If they don’t, they can be beaten. Just trust Dallas more but like I said, your call isn’t bad if you go PHI.

Hey Sky,
Thinking more about trading Vick….feels like a timebomb for my team. My team really needs a TE (streaming in a league with 17 owned) or another RB (Bradshaw is my 3rd):
What is fair value for Vick for you?
1) top 3 TE? Top 5 TE?
2) top 18 RB? Top 27 RB?

Vick was the 4th best scorer last week for QBs and the 9th best total for standard scoring leagues. Aim as high as you need, it’s just a question of what the other team needs. Vick for Graham isn’t bad but you should be targeting much higher for an RB. Just depends on the other team’s needs.

I guess what I’m trying to say is if you’re trading Vick for Daryl Richardson, you’re not doing yourself any favors. Unless you wanna take a chance on a kid like D-Wil and ask for a sweetener in return, you should be getting a solid ROI with Vick at this stage. I think he has another good week in him but it’s always a gamble.

Sup brotha!!! I’m in a 12 team ppr league and my rb’s are, Doug martin, mjd, sproles and daryl Richardson.. I’m worried about mjd and I was wondering if I should trade Daryl and my bench receiver Vincent brown for reggie bush?? My main receivers are DT, bowe and nicks so that might be too much.. idk

I still like Johnson a tad more then those two but the main reason I suggested him was because the other two haven’t done enough to prove themselves, historically. Hilton over Brown but if Brown proves himself again this weekend, I’m willing to change my mind.

Not sure I’d want to do it, or not. Just worried that Wilson might not be the answer, but worried that Kaepernick is still young, too. I think losing Garcon is tough, and not sure it’s worth the gamble. What do you think?